Stephen de Boer is Canada's Permanent Representative to the

World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates and facilitates international trade. With effective cooperation in the United Nations System, governments use the organization to establish, revise, and ...

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situ ...

, Switzerland. His appointment began on August 21, 2017.

Biography

Stephen de Boer is an environmental lawyer, diplomat, and negotiator. He was born in Goderich,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

and is the third of four children belonging to Dutch immigrants.

Education

de Boer attended

The University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a public research university in London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by residential neighbourhoods and the Thames Ri ...

, where he obtained a B.A in

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and ...

(1986), and

Bachelor of Laws Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of ...

(1989). He completed his Master of Laws (

LL.M A Master of Laws (M.L. or LL.M.; Latin: ' or ') is an advanced postgraduate academic degree, pursued by those either holding an undergraduate academic law degree, a professional law degree, or an undergraduate degree in a related subject. In mos ...

) at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

in 1991, specializing in international and comparative law.

Career

de Boer began working for

Global Affairs Canada Global Affairs Canada (GAC; french: Affaires mondiales Canada; AMC)''Global Affairs Canada'' is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development (). is the department ...

(GAC) in 2005, where he has served as Deputy Director of Investment Trade Policy, and Deputy Director of North American Trade Policy. In 2006, he served as Director of Global Affairs Canada's Softwood Lumber Division. In 2008, he was appointed as Director of the Oceans and Environmental Law Division. When Canada entered into the

UNFCCC The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) established an international environmental treaty to combat "dangerous human interference with the climate system", in part by stabilizing greenhouse gas concentrations in th ...

's international climate change negotiations, de Boer became Director General and Deputy Chief Negotiator for

Climate Change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to ...

International (CCI) for Environment Canada. In 2013, he returned to Global Affairs Canada as Director General for the Trade Controls Bureau responsible for administering the Export and Import Permits Act (EIPA). This role involved regulation of trade in military and strategic dual-use goods, implementation of trade restrictions in support of Canada's supply management programs, and protection of vulnerable Canadian industries. de Boer's first ambassadorial posting was to the Republic of Poland and Republic of Belarus in 2015. In 2017, he was appointed as Canada's Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the World Trade Organization in Geneva, Switzerland

Academic career and publications

de Boer has taught courses in regional trade arrangements (

Case Western Reserve University Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) is a private research university in Cleveland, Ohio. Case Western Reserve was established in 1967, when Western Reserve University, founded in 1826 and named for its location in the Connecticut Western Res ...

in Cleveland, Ohio), business and government (York University), and climate change law and policy (Western University). His papers include "Trading Culture: The Canada-US Magazine Dispute" in Dispute Settlement in the WTO: Issues and Practice Magazine(1998); "Commodity or Drug: Legal Aspects of International of International Trade in Tobacco Products. Lessons on the Application of Article XX of the GATT in Environmental Matters" published in "Environmental Policy: From Regulation to Economic Instruments (2002)"; and "Canadian Provinces, US States and North American Integration: Bench Warmers or Key Players?" for the Institute for Research on Public Policy (2002).

References

Year of birth missing (living people) Living people {{Improve categories, date=July 2021